Conservation topic of county steering committee meeting

February 14, 2013

CHARLES TOWN - Jefferson County held its weekly lunch meeting with members of the comprehensive plan steering committee and local residents Wednesday in Charles Town. The land, the resources on it, and the future of the resources are were discussed.

Members of Jefferson County's conservation and natural resource agencies identified issues and challenges existing in Jefferson County in regard to land and resource conservation.

Matt Pennington of Region 9 said the county should consider best management practices, or BMPs, which can be formed in such areas as soil amendments, stream restorations or improvements of the environment.

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Journal photo by Michelle HorstRepresentatives of Jefferson County’s conservation and natural resource agencies meet with residents and members of the county’s comprehensive plan steering committee Wednesday afternoon in Charles Town.

"We put ourselves in environmental situations, and we can all get out of those situations with the help of everyone," Pennington said. "It's how much do you want to put toward the BMP and how to best educate people to get a better conservation place in our community."

Michael Schwartz of the Fresh Water Institute said one of the biggest issues facing the growing county is the supply of drinking water. He said that rainwater easily fluctuates, and less rain in the future brings with it many problems.

"We are faced with developments that have a high portion of septic systems that could potentially pollute the ground water," Schwartz said.

Schwartz said the tools the county needs require being able to monitor ground water, both in terms of the levels and qualities.

Loss of canopy coverage from trees was also addressed before the ground. Tanner Haid from the Cacapon Institute said while trees help clean the air and are a good source of cleaning water, having the ability to study this issue requires time and funding.

"We need to grow our economy and not hurt where we live. We all want to live in a clean place," Pennington said.

The agricultural community is also aging and, with that, making a living from the farm land is something that farmers are still trying to figure out, Elizabeth Wheeler from the Jefferson County Farmland Protection Board said.

She said the long-term protection of agricultural land is necessary, because as the county continues to grow, that same land is going to be more in demand for the population that the land will need to serve.

"For our programs, there's nothing money can't sure in terms of being able to fund projects," Wheeler said, adding in the broad sense of the county, land-use regulations that support agricultural infrastructure and farming operations are necessary to keep the farmland.

The county comprehensive plan, Envision Jefferson 2035, is scheduled to be completed and approved by December 2014.